Huawei launched its Honor line of devices onto the European market, positioning it as a standalone brand using a direct-to-consumer model.

In a statement, the Chinese company said that “Honor is launching in a different way – without the fanfare of big-budget TV ads and without a chain of stores on the high-street”.

“Instead, the pre-launch investment has gone into creating a better smartphone at a better price,” it continued.

The model is not unique: ZTE has followed a similar path with its Nubia line, and other Chinese players such as Xiaomi and Meizu have also looked to engage directly with customers.

But Honor is a bold step in a European market that is dominated by brands such as Apple and Samsung, as well as HTC, Nokia, LG Electronics, Sony and Huawei itself.

With the traditional model in many European markets seeing operators controlling much of the device value chain, it will be interesting to see if customers are quick to adopt an unsubsidised, direct buying model.

Honor will invite customers to provide feedback suggestions on user interface improvements, on the bases of which it will update the UI “periodically”.

Devices will be sold via online retailer, and the first – Honor 6 – is priced at £249.99 in the UK market.

Honor 6 includes support for Cat6 LTE, and is powered by an octacore processor from Huawei’s HiSilicon arm.

It has a 5-inch HD screen, 13MP camera and “patented SmartPower2.0 technology giving at least 2 days battery power for average users”.